For years, I have known the following poem. It is one of my grandfather's favorites, recited for the first time about a dozen years ago at a family reunion.
My Mother Says
My Mother says she doesn't care
About the color of my hair
Or if my eyes are blue or brown
Or if my nose turns up or down
My Mother says these things don't matter.
My Mother says she doesn't care,
If I'm, dark or if I'm, fair
If I'm thin or if I'm fat
She doesn't' fret o'er things like that
She says these things don't really matter.
But if I cheat or tell a lie
Or do mean things to make folks cry,
Or if I'm rude or impolite,
And these things really matter.
It isn't looks that make one great
It's character that seals our fate.
It's what's within our hearts you see
That makes or mars our destiny
And that's what really matters.
My Mother says she doesn't care
About the color of my hair
Or if my eyes are blue or brown
Or if my nose turns up or down
My Mother says these things don't matter.
My Mother says she doesn't care,
If I'm, dark or if I'm, fair
If I'm thin or if I'm fat
She doesn't' fret o'er things like that
She says these things don't really matter.
But if I cheat or tell a lie
Or do mean things to make folks cry,
Or if I'm rude or impolite,
And these things really matter.
It isn't looks that make one great
It's character that seals our fate.
It's what's within our hearts you see
That makes or mars our destiny
And that's what really matters.
For years, I have made it a veritable crusade to do only what matters. There is however concurrently a campaign in my life to convince me to do things that don't really matter. I am everything women say they choose except 'rich' and 'hot', both of which are illusions. They often ignore the good things I do to focus on the beard or on the type of car I drive.
Well-meaning friends lecture me about a change in packaging. If I drove a different car or wore different clothes, I would attract girls, but not necessarily the kind of girls I want to attract. My friends think I need to sacrifice my values to get a woman so I can sacrifice more of what i want to keep her happy and then give up everything else for children.
Friday when I spoke to a close friend, he told me I was easy to sell. Unlike some people who have to 'clothe themselves in odd old ends stolen forth from holy writ' (Richard III), I actually have things to back up what I am and what others think me to be. If my hair or clothes don't really matter, why do people harp on it? I am a man of great character. I never claim to be perfect, but I do my best with what I have.
Eventually, people choose to be with people who really offer the things that matter. When all the partying and games are over, men and women choose the best person they think they can find. I chose a long time ago an honorable life over one that is financially successful or full of fame. That's what really matters to me.
What matters to you? If you haven't thought it out yet, I recommend it.
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